McGovern announces retirement

Marian Central athletic director Mike McGovern recently announced he is retiring at the end of the school year, and topping his to-do list is a family trip to Florida with his wife, Pat, and their son Brett’s family this summer.

Brett has a 2-year-old son, Beckett. Mike and Pat’s other son Shawn also lives in Chicago.

McGovern, 71, has spent almost 50 years administrating, coaching and teaching in sports. He has been at Marian for the past six years. The school has the job opening posted on its website.

“I love sports,” McGovern said. “I still live in Lincolnwood (on Chicago’s north side), so commuting has always been a challenge between I-90 and Route 47. I don’t think people realize how much a coach or an AD gives up in terms of their own personal lives.”

McGovern has worked at the University of Illinois-Chicago for 38 years as a professor in sports management and coach. He coached football, men’s volleyball and softball. After leaving UIC, he worked as AD at Chicago Notre Dame, an all-girls school.

McGovern saw working as an AD as a way to stay involved in something he loved.

“If you’ve ever played sports or coached sports, it’s in your blood,” he said. “It’s a passion. I have over 70 coaches and they’re all doing it for the passion they have in their sports.”

McGovern will not miss some late nights or traffic on his commutes, but he realizes he will miss other aspects of the job.

“You always have mixed feelings, you get attached,” McGovern said. “You develop so many relationships with people you meet. It’s a people business.”